The present invention relates generally to the field of stereotactic radiosurgery. In particular, the invention relates to self-shielded radiation treatment systems and methods of treatment.
The high-cost of building radiation-shielded rooms for radiosurgery equipment has created a need for systems that can be offered at a lower cost. Creating a radiosurgical system that is self-shielded accomplishes this objective, but there are challenges associated with such systems, including complex coordinated function of numerous subsystems to ensure safe and effective treatment delivery.
While various self-shielded radiosurgical systems have been proposed, there are considerable challenges encountered in executing such systems, which include the high cost and weight of the shielded components, the difficulties in positioning shielded components due to their considerable weight, and the considerable cost and size of the associated supports and driving motors that further add to the size and weight of the overall system. These challenges limit the feasibility of such designs and further limit the range of available trajectories of treatment. Therefore, there is a need for self-shielded systems having reduced weight and size, and further need for such systems with improved dexterity and range of movement for a therapeutic radiation beam and diagnostic imaging. It would be desirable for such systems to be constructed more simply and cost effectively and to have a compact size and reduced footprint so as to fit in a standard sized room without requiring a conventional vault or radiation-shielded room, to allow such treatment systems to be more widely available for treatment.